Kid/Baby Moon

Cyrus and I have never been away from Sophia simultaneously over night; this is most because we don’t have family in town and it is hard to get away.

So, we took an opportunity for a rendezvous on Friday night and went to Calistoga. One of my favorite places to go is Indian Springs because of the gorgeous surroundings and the geyser fed pool. We left mid afternoon, stopped at Domaine Chandon in Yountville for Cyrus to taste and me to get some new Champagne stoppers for when I can indulge in my favorite cocktail again, and then headed to Dean and Deluca for a few cheeses, nuts and a baguette. After checking in we had a little bed picnic and headed to the pool. We floated around for a while, looking at the stars and chatting and then went back to the room to get ready for dinner. Being that we were tired we opted for a local wine bar for dinner, which unfortunately was a little disappointing. This disappointment was short lived though as we indulged in a 12-hour slumber and awoke feeling amazing.


We spent the morning again in the pool and then got ready and went to walk around St. Helena. No trip to the Napa Valley is complete for me without a stop in Woodhouse chocolates, which we procured for our friends and family.

After St. Helena we stopped at Grgich Hills to taste some wines. The wine maker was kind enough to let us taste whatever we wanted, so Cyrus indulged in some 2005, 2006 and 2007 varieties. We ended up with a few amazing bottles, some with great meaning to our lives. We bought Sophia a 2008 Zinfandel for her 21st birthday and a 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon for our 10-year anniversary.

After tasting wine we headed to Bouchon in Yountville for the best lunch of our lives. We started with endive and radicchio with apple and Rochefort and then I had leg of lamb and Cyrus had the Osso Bucco. They were perfectly cooked and seasoned- we will definitely be returning. Being that we had a party starting at 4 in our honor in the bay area, we opted for 2 Bouchons and lattes to go for dessert.

We drove back and arrived at the party right on time; Sophia was thrilled to see us and we had a wonderful time catching up with everyone, including the new babies.

Throw in the Sunday morning farmer’s market and French brunch in Campbell and this was the perfect weekend. I think we got a lot out of our short trip- a chance to reconnect as a couple and not just parents. I am already looking forward to our next couple weekend, even if it will be many months or possibly years away.

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Kid/Baby Moon

Cyrus and I have never been away from Sophia simultaneously over night; this is most because we don’t have family in town and it is hard to get away.

So, we took an opportunity for a rendezvous on Friday night and went to Calistoga. One of my favorite places to go is Indian Springs because of the gorgeous surroundings and the geyser fed pool. We left mid afternoon, stopped at Domaine Chandon in Yountville for Cyrus to taste and me to get some new Champagne stoppers for when I can indulge in my favorite cocktail again, and then headed to Dean and Deluca for a few cheeses, nuts and a baguette. After checking in we had a little bed picnic and headed to the pool. We floated around for a while, looking at the stars and chatting and then went back to the room to get ready for dinner. Being that we were tired we opted for a local wine bar for dinner, which unfortunately was a little disappointing. This disappointment was short lived though as we indulged in a 12-hour slumber and awoke feeling amazing.


We spent the morning again in the pool and then got ready and went to walk around St. Helena. No trip to the Napa Valley is complete for me without a stop in Woodhouse chocolates, which we procured for our friends and family.

After St. Helena we stopped at Grgich Hills to taste some wines. The wine maker was kind enough to let us taste whatever we wanted, so Cyrus indulged in some 2005, 2006 and 2007 varieties. We ended up with a few amazing bottles, some with great meaning to our lives. We bought Sophia a 2008 Zinfandel for her 21st birthday and a 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon for our 10-year anniversary.

After tasting wine we headed to Bouchon in Yountville for the best lunch of our lives. We started with endive and radicchio with apple and Rochefort and then I had leg of lamb and Cyrus had the Osso Bucco. They were perfectly cooked and seasoned- we will definitely be returning. Being that we had a party starting at 4 in our honor in the bay area, we opted for 2 Bouchons and lattes to go for dessert.

We drove back and arrived at the party right on time; Sophia was thrilled to see us and we had a wonderful time catching up with everyone, including the new babies.

Throw in the Sunday morning farmer’s market and French brunch in Campbell and this was the perfect weekend. I think we got a lot out of our short trip- a chance to reconnect as a couple and not just parents. I am already looking forward to our next couple weekend, even if it will be many months or possibly years away.

Read more...

Chalk up another line- we made it to 5 years!

We have been married for 5 years, which is actually extremely hard to believe as time has flown by. We celebrated by spending an afternoon wine tasting in the Santa Cruz mountains. After all the wine we had dinner at a fantastic spot in Los Gatos- James Randall. If you live in this area and need a night out, go here- you will not be disappointed!

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Chalk up another line- we made it to 5 years!

We have been married for 5 years, which is actually extremely hard to believe as time has flown by. We celebrated by spending an afternoon wine tasting in the Santa Cruz mountains. After all the wine we had dinner at a fantastic spot in Los Gatos- James Randall. If you live in this area and need a night out, go here- you will not be disappointed!

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Extra Ordinary Wine : Pat's 40th

Pat's 40th birthday party was incredible. We had so much fun with Pat, Maddie, the herd of girls following her around, and of course all of Pat's friends. Of course Anna always throws an incredible party and this was no exception.

Pat and his friend Bill got the crazy idea that drinking all/most of the cabernet sauvignon wines from Napa Valley from their birth year would be a good idea for a party for their 40th. Needless to say, the evidence of such a party is in the pictures below.

Bill took care lifting and separating each crumbling old cork from the ancient bottles. It feel like equal parts archeology and Oenology. Anyway, we eventually got all of the bottles open. Then we started the tasting. I dont recall the exact order we tasted them, but the BV, Heitz, Inglenook, Krug, and Ridge certainly stood out. We even took a chance at ranking the wines after the tastings. While opening the Mayacama we noticed some issues with the cork and worried. This was one wine that Pat was especially excited about. Judge -- undrinkable. Other than that, everyone agreed that all of the other wines were between good and excellent! My favorite was definitely the Heitz.

Half way thru the night, Anna screamed out -- insect alert! I was pointed to a huge dragon fly that had invaded the house that had landed on the lamp fixture in the dining room. I had to grab the camera first, but then I was able to deftly grab the animal and release the beast outside; shaken, but unharmed. Anyway, I did end up getting a good pic of the fly. Kind of fun after having a few 1968 cabernets actually.

So -- happy birthday Pat! We miss you already with you off in Panama.

 
 
 
 

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Extra Ordinary Wine : Pat's 40th

Pat's 40th birthday party was incredible. We had so much fun with Pat, Maddie, the herd of girls following her around, and of course all of Pat's friends. Of course Anna always throws an incredible party and this was no exception.

Pat and his friend Bill got the crazy idea that drinking all/most of the cabernet sauvignon wines from Napa Valley from their birth year would be a good idea for a party for their 40th. Needless to say, the evidence of such a party is in the pictures below.

Bill took care lifting and separating each crumbling old cork from the ancient bottles. It feel like equal parts archeology and Oenology. Anyway, we eventually got all of the bottles open. Then we started the tasting. I dont recall the exact order we tasted them, but the BV, Heitz, Inglenook, Krug, and Ridge certainly stood out. We even took a chance at ranking the wines after the tastings. While opening the Mayacama we noticed some issues with the cork and worried. This was one wine that Pat was especially excited about. Judge -- undrinkable. Other than that, everyone agreed that all of the other wines were between good and excellent! My favorite was definitely the Heitz.

Half way thru the night, Anna screamed out -- insect alert! I was pointed to a huge dragon fly that had invaded the house that had landed on the lamp fixture in the dining room. I had to grab the camera first, but then I was able to deftly grab the animal and release the beast outside; shaken, but unharmed. Anyway, I did end up getting a good pic of the fly. Kind of fun after having a few 1968 cabernets actually.

So -- happy birthday Pat! We miss you already with you off in Panama.

 
 
 
 

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